How to use the SUBSTR() and INSTR() Functions In SQL

One approach to split delimited strings in SQLite involves using the SUBSTR() and INSTR() functions. These functions are available in SQLite and can be used to extract substrings based on character positions.

Consider a scenario where we have a table with a column containing delimited strings:

SELECT
id,
SUBSTR(names, 1, INSTR(names, ',') - 1) AS item1,
SUBSTR(names, INSTR(names, ',') + 1) AS item2
FROM
Product;

Output:

Explanation: In the above query, we extracts two items from the ‘names‘ column in the ‘Product‘ table and splitting them based on the comma (‘,’) delimiter. It uses the SUBSTR function to extract the first item from the start of the string to the first comma, and the second item from after the first comma to the end of the string.

How to Split a Delimited String to Access Individual Items in SQLite?

In SQLite, managing delimited strings can be a common requirement, especially when dealing with data that needs to be stored or manipulated in a database. Delimited strings are essentially strings where items are separated by a specific delimiter character, such as commas, pipes, or tabs. Splitting these strings into individual items can be important for various database operations and queries.

In this article, we will explore different methods to efficiently split delimited strings in SQLite to access individual items with the help of various methods along with the examples and so on.

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How to Split String in SQLite?

When working with SQLite databases, we may encounter situations where data is stored in a delimited format, such as comma–separated values. To access individual items within such strings, we need to split them into separate elements....

1. Using the SUBSTR() and INSTR() Functions

One approach to split delimited strings in SQLite involves using the SUBSTR() and INSTR() functions. These functions are available in SQLite and can be used to extract substrings based on character positions....

2. Using the Recursive Common Table Expression (CTE)

WITH RECURSIVE Splitter AS ( SELECT id, SUBSTR(names, 1, INSTR(names, ',') - 1) AS part, SUBSTR(names, INSTR(names, ',') + 1) AS remainder FROM Product UNION ALL SELECT id, SUBSTR(remainder, 1, INSTR(remainder, ',') - 1) AS part, SUBSTR(remainder, INSTR(remainder, ',') + 1) AS remainder FROM Splitter WHERE remainder != '')SELECT id, partFROM Splitter;...

3. Creating a Custom Split Function

import sqlite3def split_string(delimited_text, delimiter=','): return delimited_text.split(delimiter)def create_split_function(conn): conn.create_function("split_string", 1, split_string)# Connect to the SQLite databaseconn = sqlite3.connect(":memory:")# Create the Product tableconn.execute("CREATE TABLE Product (id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY, names TEXT)")# Insert sample dataconn.execute("INSERT INTO Product (names) VALUES ('apple,banana'), ('mango,orange')")# Create the custom split functioncreate_split_function(conn)# Usage examplecursor = conn.cursor()cursor.execute("SELECT id, split_string(names, ',') FROM Product")print(cursor.fetchall())# Close the connectionconn.close()...

Conclusion

Overall, In this article you have learned how to split a delimited string to access individual items in SQLite. You explored two different approaches such as using the SUBSTR() and INSTR() functions and creating a custom split function. By applying these techniques, you can efficiently work with delimited strings in SQLite and handle complex data structures with ease....

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